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Costume Attendants

Typical education: Certificate or apprenticeshipLower pressure Bright Outlook

What they do

Select, fit, and take care of costumes for cast members, and aid entertainers. May assist with multiple costume changes during performances.

Kinds of work

  • Artistic: Creating, designing and expressing ideas through art, writing, music or performance.
  • Conventional: Organizing information, following clear procedures and working with data and details.
  • Realistic: Hands-on work with tools, machines, plants or animals, often outdoors.

Lower pressure: How much pressure workers in this job report: deadlines, conflict, dealing with upset people, the cost of mistakes, responsibility for others' safety, competition and long hours. It varies a lot from one employer to the next. Source: U.S. Department of Labor worker surveys.

Pay, tasks and more

Salary

United States $50,400 Median per year · $24.23/hr Most earn $32,150–$109,520

BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, 2025.

What you might do

  • Create worksheets for dressing lists, show notes, or costume checks.
  • Purchase, rent, or requisition costumes or other wardrobe necessities.
  • Assign lockers to employees and maintain locker rooms, dressing rooms, wig rooms, or costume storage or laundry areas.
  • Collaborate with production designers, costume designers, or other production staff to discuss and execute costume design details.
  • Study books, pictures, or examples of period clothing to determine styles worn during specific periods in history.
  • Return borrowed or rented items when productions are complete and return other items to storage.

Job outlook

Bright Outlook Rapid Growth

United States
6% more jobs by 2035, faster than average · about 1,700 openings a year

Openings include new jobs and jobs left by workers who retire or change careers. Projections: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. "Bright Outlook": U.S. Department of Labor.

Where they work

  • Theater companies and dinner theaters28.8%
  • Amusement parks and arcades11.6%
  • Colleges, universities, and professional schools8.0%
  • Promoters of performing arts, sports, and similar events4.6%
  • Casino hotels4.2%

Share of all workers in this career. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, National Employment Matrix.

Experience before this job: 6 months to 1 year

Some people start through an apprenticeship: paid training on the job, often with classes. Search apprenticeships on Apprenticeship.gov (opens in a new tab) ↗

Career path

How people usually get into this career, from school to their first job and beyond.

Typical education: Certificate or apprenticeshipExperience before this job: 6 months to 1 year

Costume Attendant is an entry-level job, but most people first complete some training, such as a certificate or apprenticeship, and about 6 months to 1 year of related work like hand sewing or theater wardrobe help. Many people reach it within a few years of finishing high school.

  1. High school diploma (with sewing, theater, or art classes)

    4 years

    Building basic sewing, measuring, and teamwork skills now gives you a head start on the hands-on work this career needs.

  2. Sewer, Hand

    6 months to 1 year

    Hand sewing teaches you to repair, hem, and finish garments carefully, which is a core part of keeping costumes ready for performances.

  3. Costume Attendant

    Entry level once trained

    You select, fit, and care for costumes, and help performers with quick costume changes during shows, often through a certificate program or apprenticeship along the way.

Where it can lead

  1. Wardrobe Supervisor

    Several years as a costume attendant or wardrobe crew member of experience first

    You would lead a wardrobe team, plan costume budgets and schedules, and manage fittings and repairs for a production.

  2. Fabric and Apparel Patternmaker

    2 to 4 years of experience first

    You would turn designs into patterns for garments, which requires deeper technical sewing and pattern-drafting skills than attendant work.

What you can do now

Ideas for high school and college students.

In high school

  • Take sewing, family and consumer science, or fashion classesThese classes teach the hand and machine sewing skills costume work depends on.
  • Join the drama or theater clubWorking on costumes for school plays gives you real experience with fittings, quick changes, and deadlines.
  • Volunteer with a community theater or dance groupHelping backstage shows you how professional costume teams work and gives you people to ask for advice.
  • Get a part-time job in a fabric store or alterations shopWorking with fabrics and helping customers with fit builds practical skills and reliability.
  • Build a small sewing portfolioPhotos of hems, repairs, or costumes you made show future employers what you can do.

In college

  • Take costume, theater, or textile coursesCourses in costume construction, fabric science, or stage production give you the technical base employers look for.
  • Join a campus theater or costume crewHands-on work on college productions teaches fittings, quick changes, and maintaining costumes during a run.
  • Apply for a theater or costume internshipAn internship with a theater company or performing arts group gives you experience and professional contacts.
  • Take a campus job in the theater department or costume shopA paid student role lets you build the 6 months to 1 year of related experience employers often expect.
  • Look into a certificate or apprenticeship in wardrobe or costume workThis is the most common type of training for this career, and it can help you stand out when applying.

Tips for getting started

  • Ask a local theater, dance studio, or community playhouse if you can volunteer backstage on costumes. Real show experience is one of the best ways to get started.
  • Practice sewing basics like hems, buttons, zippers, and simple repairs, and keep a small portfolio of photos of your work.
  • Learn to keep a clear record of costume pieces and fitting notes, since organization matters as much as sewing in this job.

Related jobs that often lead here

Related jobs a step up

Education, experience and related careers: U.S. Department of Labor. The step-by-step path, where it can lead and what you can do now were written by AI as typical examples; many people take other ways.

College majors that lead here

Majors: U.S. Department of Education and BLS (CIP–SOC crosswalk). Earnings and debt: College Scorecard, typical across U.S. colleges.

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